Strange Currency

Monday - Saturday at 8pm

Strange Currency airs six nights a week on KMUW, bringing you new releases, old favorites and forgotten classics. We spotlight local and regional acts, including guests on Currency Exchange, our live in-the-studio program recorded at the KMUW studios.

Jedd Beaudoin invites you to listen 8 to 10pm Monday through Saturday as he opens up his personal music vault and lets you in.

For the third year in row, KMUW 89.1 FM and its music shows Global Village and Strange Currency are winners in the annual Public Radio Exchange (PRX) Zeitfunk Awards. KMUW was Number Two in the category of Most Licensed Station, edging out stations in New York, Chicago, and other major markets.

Tuesday, September 9: North Carolina’s Holy Ghost Tent Revival has been praised for its blend of music from the 1960s (especially The Band) and contemporary sounds (think: Dr. Dog). The group’s debut album, The Right State of Mind is out now and we’ll hear from that release on this episode of Strange Currency as well as from Adult Roommates the latest from Somebody’s Darling, a release that appeals to fans of Bonnie Raitt and The Heartless Bastards.

Monday, August 25: Look Again To The Wind is a new re-creation of Johnny Cash’s 1964 album Bitter Tears. The original remains perhaps the most controversial in Cash’s career. Concerned with Native American rights the album saw Nashville temporarily turn its back on Cash when the record first emerged. We’ll hear from both the original album and this new tribute, which features Gillian Welch, Kris Kristofferson, Milk Carton Kids, and Steve Earle.

Monday, August 18: Chavez Ravine is a 2005 album from Ry Cooder that tells the story of an historically important Los Angeles neighborhood. Although the neighborhood was scheduled to be heavily developed with public housing and a better parks and school system in the 1950s, a series of events forced many of the families in the area to sell their homes, making way for a new stadium which would become home to the Dodgers when the baseball team left New York for Los Angeles.

Saturday, August 9: Listen for selections from Close To the Edge, the 1972 album from British progressive rock band Yes. The album was the final to feature founding drummer Bill Bruford and is one of the group’s best-regarded releases. Plus selections from Dogs In The Daylight, the upcoming release from Portland, Oregon-based singer-songwriter Jeffrey Martin. Martin draws influence from songwriters such as Jackson Browne, Graham Nash, and Neil Young.

Thursday, July 24: Jackson Browne and Warren Zevon were somewhat unlikely but lifelong friends. Browne’s songs were often earnest, while Zevon’s were satirical and sometimes biting in their observations. Still, the two often worked together, beginning with Zevon’s first two albums for the Asylum label in the 1970s, which Browne produced. We’ll hear from those two Zevon releases and from Jackson Browne’s 2008 release Time The Conqueror.

Wednesday, July 16: We’ll hear from Jackson Browne’s 1973 album For Everyman, a record featuring appearances from Bonnie Raitt, Elton John, Joni Mitchell and David Crosby. It also marks the first collaboration between Browne and multi-instrumentalist David Lindley. The two have collaborated off and on since 1973, including on the live album Love Is Strange, which we’ll also hear from.

Tuesday, July 8: Listen for selections from John Hiatt’s 2000 album Crossing Muddy Waters. Hiatt focused on acoustic instruments on this recording, emerging with an album that was raw and emotionally charged, featuring songs about struggles with grief, family, and filled with his usual blend of humor and careful observation. The record was nominated for a 2001 Grammy for Best Folk Album and remains a favorite among Hiatt fans. We’ll also hear selections from 1861, the 2008 release from Kansas trio Moreland & Arbuckle.

Tuesday, July 1: We celebrate Canada Day with a sampling of acts from the Great White North, including The Tragically Hip, Crash Test Dummies, Bruce Cockburn and the band Max Webster.

Wednesday, July 2: We celebrate the life and music of soul legend Bobby Womack, with samples of his work from his early days in the gospel-infused act The Womack Brothers to his final solo album, The Bravest Man In The Universe, which was co-produced by Damon Albarn of the Britpop band Blur. Womack died on June 27 of still undisclosed causes. He was 70.